Both one and two-dimensional (2-D) barcodes are known. The latter are used to encode relatively large amounts of information in the form of a character string. This information can then be provided to a recipient in the form of a printout or other communication means.
Information encoded in a 2-D barcode (hereinafter “content information”) is decoded using a decoding device. Such a device may be a mobile station provided with a digital camera, and having a function of decoding content information encoded in a 2-D barcode. Such a system is disclosed, for example, in “J-SH010” (Sharp Corporation, http://www.sharp.co.jp/products/jsh010/text/barcode.html, May 27, 2003).
According to the disclosed Sharp mobile station a user operates the station's digital camera to read a 2-D barcode from a printed object, and content information encoded in the barcode is then decoded. When particular character strings are detected in the 2-D barcode, the mobile station is caused to execute corresponding particular processes. For example, detected content information “MEMORY:” causes the mobile station to register in its telephone directory content information present in a character string that follows “MEMORY:” such information may include, for example, a name, telephone number, Email address, and so on.
A problem exists with this system, however, in that content information are not standardized for use among different types or makes of mobile stations. Thus, depending on a format of content information encoded in a 2-D barcode, a mobile station may or may not be able to process the content information. The easiest solution to this problem would be to standardize formats of content information for use in 2-D barcodes with mobile stations. However, this is unlikely to happen since vendors of such stations wish to differentiate their products.
A further inconvenience caused by this incompatibility problem is that it is difficult for a user of a mobile station to visually distinguish a format used for content information merely by looking at a 2-D barcode. As a result, the user may waste time reading with a mobile station a 2-D barcode having encoded content information which cannot be properly processed by his/her mobile station. Moreover, the user is unable to know whether the encoded content information can be processed by his/her mobile station until the read operation of the barcode is complete. This acts as a disincentive to users attempting to obtain content information with their mobile stations utilizing the barcode system.
Further, even if content information can be successfully processed by a user's mobile station and the user is able to acquire desired information, the acquired information is sometimes not utilized by the user. For example, when a vendor posts an advertisement poster, on which a barcode is printed, a user can access general information provided by the vendor by using the information contained in the barcode, but the information may not match the user's needs. In such a case, it would be more effective if user-oriented information suited to a user's preferences could be accessed by use of information contained in a barcode. However, it is impractical to print as many barcodes as the number of variations of users' preferences on an advertisement poster or in a catalog. Further, it would be troublesome for a user to find a barcode suited to his/her preferences from among a number of printed barcodes. Thus, it has been difficult to provide information suited to the needs of a user by means of a barcode.